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Murmuring over and over, '* Nathan ! 

Nathan !'* old Elon threw his arms 

about him and kissed him 



WHEN THE BLIND 
SAW 



By 

David de Forest Burrell 

Author of ^'Letters from the Dominie," 
"How They Came to Bethlehem," etc. 



With Illustrations by 

R. E. TODHUNTER 



AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY 

PARK AVE. AND 40TH STREET 
NEW YORK 



t > < \ ' ' 



^'t^i^ 



Copyrighted, 1916, by 
AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY 



OCT 21 1916 
CI.A445262 



To 

N. M. B., 

on whom now shines the fulness of 
*'the light of the knowledge of the 
glory of God in the face of Jesus 
Christ," this little story is dedicated. 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 

Murmuring over and over, "Nathan! 
Nathan!" old Elon threw his arms 
about him and kissed him Frontispiece '"^ 

FACING PAGE 

He saw ! — saw a strange white Hght, 
a shimmering glory, in the heav- 
ens i6 ^ 

He threw himself prone by its brink 
and plunged his face into its cool 
waters 44 ,/ 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 
By David de Forest Burrell 

THE little stone house stood 
on a shoulder of the hill 
by the Jerusalem road, hard by 
the sheep-tower; and like an im- 
pudent one-eyed beggar leering 
at some prosperous neighbor, it 
looked down with its solitary 
window on the neat homes and 
bright gardens of Bethlehem, 
spread along the ridge below. 
With its one bare room, its 
crumbling walls, its leaky mud- 
roof, it was a sorry home; but it 
was the only home the lad had 
ever known. 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

He was lonely and timid; 
lonely, for he was blind, and his 
world was small and dark; and 
timid because his father was 
wont to beat him for no other of- 
fence than that he had been born 
blind and, therefore, useless. He 
had grown used to the sound of 
that harsh voice asking, with a 
shepherd's wild oaths, ^ What is a 
blind son but a burden? What 
can he do but turn beggar?'^ 

Reiteration being mighty in ar-i 
gument, and the lad growing as 
lads will, turn beggar he did per- 
iorce. This was in his tenth year. 
Sitting by the dusty road in the 
hot summer sun, a fierce-eyed 
shepherd dog by his side, he 
would stretch forth his hand with 
a shrill cry as the laden caravans 

4 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

went by. If perchance a copper 
rewarded his importunity, he 
would bring it to his mother, 
holding it forth timidly, as if it 
were the only apology he could 
make for his existence. And, 
truth to tell, since money also 
argues strongly, there began to be 
days when the boorish shepherd 
and his wife were inclined to feel 
that as a blind beggar the boy 
would do more to better the fam- 
ily fortunes than he could have 
done following the flock. So the 
Summer passed and the Autumn, 
and the little fellow was well on 
the way through his sordid ap- 
prenticeship. 

But one day something hap- 
pened. Seated by the roadside, 
shivering under a pale winter sun. 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

he grew weary of waiting for lag- 
gard travelers. He got to his feet 
and stretched his cramped little 
legs. With one hand gripping 
the dog^s shaggy shoulder, the 
other feeling before him with his 
little staff, he made his way to the 
gate of the sheep fold by the 
tower. It was here that the sac- 
rificial flocks were kept; his fath- 
er's few sheep were folded over 
the hill. 

The gate of the sacred enclos- 
ure was open, and he entered. 
The silence told him, what he 
hoped, that the fold was empty. 
Hurrying across the field to the 
low tower in the corner, he 
climbed the few rough steps lead- 
ing to the top. He felt for the 
wall, found it, carefully swung his 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

feet over, and sat with unseeing 
eyes facing the sloping hills and 
the town and the wilderness be- 
yond. The winter wind beat 
against his brown cheeks; his 
blood tingled with the smart of it. 
He felt the bigness of the world 
about him, though he saw it not. 

Suddenly came a voice from 
close beside him : " 'Tis a wonder- 
ful world, little lad." 

Fearful for the moment, he 
turned a startled face towards his 
unseen neighbor. Then his fears 
fled. He knew the voice, had 
heard it many a time calling the 
dogs and sheep ; it was the kindly 
voice of Elon, one of the herds- 
men who kept the sacrificial 
flocks. 

^^It feels like a wonderful 
7 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

world," he answered simply. ^^I 
cannot see it." 

'^I know thee," said the shep- 
herd; ^^thou art Nathan, Shamans 
little blind son. Often have I 
passed thee when thou sat'st by 
the roadside begging." 

The lad flushed under his dark 
skin, but he only said, *^I am he." 

"Weshallmakebetterthanabeg- 
gar of thee some day," said Elon. 

'^I know not how," returned the 
lad in his slow, discouraged voice. 
'What can the blind do but beg? 
What can I do? Mine own father 
mocks me when I say I have the 
making of a shepherd in me." 

The man was silent for a mo- 
ment, watching him with pitying 
eyes. Then he spoke cheerily: 

"Some sort of true man thou wilt 

8 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

be, I know. Jehovah liveth still." 
*^Can He open mine eyes?" 
"That He can," came the bold 
answer. '^I have never seen such 
a thing, but things came to pass in 
the day of the prophets; and an- 
other day Cometh." 
"What day?" 

"Messiah's day," answered the 
shepherd, with a ring in his voice 
that stirred the lad's interest. 
"Dost not remember? Along this 
very road from the south came 
Micah, and looked down from 
these hills upon our town yonder, 
and spake of Messiah that He 
should be born there: ^Thou, 
Bethlehem Ephrathah, which art 
little to be among the thousands 
of Judah, out of thee shall One 
come forth unto me that is to be 

9 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

ruler in Israel, whose goings forth 
are from of old, from everlasting.' " 

With kindling eyes the man 
looked off towards the white- 
walled town below. ^^Mensay,"he 
continued, ^^that the time of His 
coming draweth nigh. The Rabbi 
in our synagogue saith so. And 
when He cometh wondrous things 
will happen. It may be, lad — 
dost recall Isaiah's words? ^The 
eyesoftheblindshallbeopened!' " 

The boy's face was lifted up, 
his sightless eyes shining with a 
new-born hope. '^Dost thou think 
so truly, Elon? Doth the Rabbi 
say it? My father's house, thou 
knowest, is outcast: the Rabbi will 
not speak to me when he goes by, 
for it is years since my father went 
up to one of the feasts. Dost 

10 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

truly think so? Oh, if He would 
but come — and touch mine eyes! 
It is so dark!" 

But Elon thrust in a warning: 
"Thou must not hope too much. 
It may be that God would teach 
and use thee through thy blind- 
ness. We who see do miss things 
which thou mayest be given grace 
to see. Thy soul may have good 
eyes, if thy body may not. Yet — 
He will come some day. He may 
come soon: no man knoweth." 

"I understand," cried the boy, 
nodding his head bravely, though 
he held it not so high. "I under- 
stand. I will try to see with my 
soul's eyes; and I will pray, too, 
for sight out of these blind eyes 
and for the coming of the Mes- 
siah. If He should come, and 
II 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

touch me, and I should see — ^Tell 
mc, Elon, what shall I see when 
He Cometh? Look out over the 
hills yonder and tell what thine 
eyes show thee !" 

So the shepherd told him of the 
world that lay at his feet — of the 
hills running down to the town 
nestled on the lower ridge; of or- 
chards, palest green of olives, 
faintest pink of almonds; of 
brown gardens and terraced vine- 
yards circling the town; of the 
valley sinking deep and deeper 
down to the Dead Sea, whose 
steely blue waters shone far be- 
low through a rocky cleft; of 
mountains rising, snow-mantled, 
into the distant blue; of scattered 
clouds flying overhead. And lit- 
tle Nathan, listening, nodded his 

12 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

head as he fixed each bit of the 
landscape in his mind, finding, 
somehow, a meaning for words 
that had no meaning in his dark 
and colorless world. 

So began a friendship between 
the blind boy and the shepherd, a 
friendship to be strengthened 
whenever Nathan could steal 
away from his hated occupation 
by the roadside and make his way 
over to the fold where the sacri- 
ficial flocks lay by night. It was 
in the evening that he could go 
most easily; for if he brought in 
a copper coin or two by supper- 
time, none cared where he wan- 
dered after dark when there were 
no more travelers passing by. 

Night after night he and the 

dog were to be found by the shep- 
13 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

herd's fire. Elon's great baggy 
sheepskin cloak was big enough 
for two. Snugly wrapped in it, 
nestling close to the side of his big 
friend, Nathan spent many a 
happy hour. Often the talk was 
of Messiah; soberly and earnestly 
the shepherds debated the time of 
His coming; warmly they specu- 
lated on Bethlehem's part in the 
glorious event; and always, after 
such evenings, the lad crept home 
as late as he dared, with tingling 
ears and throbbing heart, wonder- 
ing, hoping, praying. 

At last it happened. It was a 
cold night. The wind found its 
way through the cracks in the 
wall of the sheepfold when 

Nathan groped his way to the fire 

14 



WHEN THr: BLIND SAW 

the men had kindled in a shel- 
tered corner. His father was 
away, as usual, with his own small 
flock, over the shoulder of the hill 
toward Bethlehem. His mother 
was busy with the care of the lad's 
wee brother, a babe of a few 
months. The lad and the dog, 
sure of their evening, crouched 
by the fire. The shepherds after 
a brief '^Shalom" said little. A 
fox barked from the hilltop, and 
the dogs set up an answering 
howl, quickly quieted by the threat 
of Elon's staff. The boy, warm 
and comfortable, closed his eye- 
lids over his blind eyes and slept. 
He was wakened by the dog, 
cowering at his feet and whining. 
He sat up. A sudden feeling of 
mingled fear and joy sent his 

IS 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

heart into his throat. With blind 
eyes he stared into the darkness, 
and it was no more dark. He 
saw! — saw a strange white light, 
a shimmering glory, in the heav- 
ens; saw in the heart of the glory 
the blinding beauty of an angelic 
form! And from the angel's lips 
came the welcome music of the 
words the lad had so longed for: 
"Be not afraid, for behold, I 
bring you good tidings of great 
joy which shall be to all the peo- 
ple; for there is born to you this 
day in the city of David a Sav- 
iour, who i? Christ the Lord. And 
this is the sign unto you : Ye shall 
find a babe wrapped in swaddling 
clothes and lying in a manger." 

The heavenly light grew 
brighter. As if attendant angels 

i6 




He saw ! — saw a strange white light, 
a shimmering glory, in the heavens 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

but awaited the annunciation, 
they appeared, in the midst of the 
splendor, and from their lips 
came a heavenly strain: 



tt 



Glory to God in the highest, \ 
And on earth peace among men I 
in whom He is well pleased/' 



They were gone. The last 
faint echo died away. The 
brightness faded. The lad's world 
was dark again. And now he 
realized that Elon was holding 
his shoulder in a grip that hurt. 
He heard, close by, the heavy, 
sharp breathing of the other men ; 
so he knew that all had seen. 

"Elon!" he gasped; "the an- 
gels! I saw them — I saw!" 

The man drew a long breath. 
17 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

"I too saw them," he said in an 
awed whisper, '^and heard them. 
Lad, lad, the Saviour cometh!" 

Suddenly he turned to Nathan 
in amazement: "Dost mean that 
thou sawest them? Thou?" 

The little fellow was sobbing in 
his excitement. "I did! I did 
see ! But now — O Elon, I see 
nothing! I am blind still!" 

One of the other shepherds 
stirred. "Canst see the red coals 
here in the fire?" he asked. 

The lad stared into the dark- 
ness with unseeing eyes, and cried 
out pitifully, "Nay, all is dark!" 

"But thou didst see the angels," 
said Elon, his strong comforting 
arm about the little fellow's 
shoulders. "It is as I said: he 
that hath blind eyes can see with 

i8 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW^ 

the eyes of his soul. But, O my 
brothers, my dear lad, why wait 
we here? Messiah is born! Let 
us go even to Bethlehem and see!" 

Nathan caught at the thought. 
"Quickly, let us go! It may be, 
since I saw the angels, I may see 
the Saviour!" 

They were afoot at once, the 
shepherds with staves in hand, 
sheepskins thrown back over their 
shoulders. Out at the gate and 
down the road they hastened 
towards the few lights gleaming 
late in the town below. The 
blind boy stumbled along, hold- 
ing fast to the strong hand of his 
big friend. In the darkness they 
passed the low wall of a neigh- 
boring field. Over it leaned the 

dim form of a man. 
19 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

'Whither, brothers?" he 
called. 

At the sound of his voice Na- 
than shrank close to Elon. ^^It 
is my father!" he whispered. The 
shepherd threw his baggy coat 
about the lad and drew him closer 
to his side in the shadows. 

'Teace be to thee, Shama," he 
answered, slackening his stride. 
"We go to Bethlehem. Didst 
thou hear what the angel said?" 

"Angel," said Shama stupidly. 
He laughed. "Angel, sayest thou? 
Naught have I heard save the fox 
on the hill. What said thy 
angel?" he asked derisively. 

"That in Bethlehem we should 
find the new-born Saviour, the 
Christ," called back one of the 
other men. 

20 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

Shama laughed again. "Go 
your ways on your fool's errand," 
he cried after them; but he got no 
answer; they were hurrying on 
down the road. 

In the stable under the brow of 
the hill by the inn they found as 
the angel had said. A golden 
radiance shone faintly through 
the cracks of the heavy door, 
brightening to a light that for a 
moment blinded the shepherds as 
they flung open the door and en- 
tered. A moment more and they 
saw the cattle in their rough stalls, 
the oil-lamps burning dimly on 
the floor in a far corner, and there, 
a little group of people bending 
over a bundle of white that lay 
upon the straw. It was the 
Christ-Child. His mother lay be- 

21 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

side Him, her fingers caressing 
one little hand. 

Nathan tugged at Elon's sleeve. 
'The light! The light! Elon!'' 
he cried, '1 see it!" 

But neither Elon nor any other 
heeded him. As by one impulse 
the shepherds stepped forward 
and knelt before the manger. 
Nathan, open-eyed, seeing only 
the heavenly light, clung still to 
Elon's sleeve, and when he knelt, 
knelt with him. The mother, ly- 
ing there, watched with a wonder- 
ful light in her eyes and a smile 
upon her lips but said nothing. 

'What sent you hither?" said 
one at length to the newcomers. 

"An angel of Jehovah," an- 
swered Elon simply, and straight- 
way told his tale. 

22 



WHEN TIIK BLIND SAW 

They were out in the open 
country again, mounting the long 
slope towards their pastures, 
when Elon noticed the lad's si- 
lence. The man's mind had been 
in a tumult of exaltation. The 
old Psalms of the fathers rang in 
his ears; he and his fellow-shep- 
herds had not ceased to sing them 
and to tell over and over again the 
glories of the Saviour. Now, sud- 
denly, he noticed that little Na- 
than at his elbow, trudging sturd- 
ily along through the night, was 
mute. 

'Why, lad, where is thy voice?" 
he asked in joyous reproach. 

A sob answered him. Na- 
than's hand stole further under 
his arm and gripped it convul- 
sively. ^'O Elon," said he, 

22 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

brokenly, ^1 could not see Him! 
I saw the light, and I knew He 
was there, and I tried and tried, 
but I could not see Him! I am 
glad He is come — but I wanted to 
see Him; and I hoped that He 
would open mine eyes — and — and 
I am blind still!" 

Elon the shepherd must needs 
walk in silence for full half a 
hundred paces before he could 
answer. 

"Dear lad," he said cheering- 
ly, "He is but a babe! Wait thou 
till He shall grow to manhood! 
Some day He may yet touch 
thine eyes and open them. 
Come, forget not that thy soul 
hath eyes ! Sing, sing thou with 
us, for the Hope of Israel is 

come! Only be thou patient!" 

24 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

So Up the long road under the 
stars the blind boy, with tears on 
his cheeks and tears in his clear 
young voice, sang with them, and 
at length slipped in at the door 
of his sleeping home. And that 
night he prayed God to give him 
patience to wait till Messiah 
should be grown to manhood. 

A month and more passed. 
Nathan had fallen again easily 
enough into the commonplaces 
of his little life. Day by day, 
when winter's storms permitted, 
his soft, appealing voice assailed 
the ears of the passer-by. Thus 
it came about that, crouched 
under the wall away from the 
wind, he cried for alms amid the 
mingled noises of beasts and har- 

2S 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

ness and shouting drivers while 
a great caravan from the south 
went by. In the midst of the 
confusion his quick ear caught 
the pad-pad of an ass's feet and 
the shuffle of a man's sandals on 
the dusty road. He heard 
a man's voice, and he knew the 
speaker for a Galilean at the first 
word. 

^The Child is David's Son," 
the voice said, ^^and He shall live 
in David's town where He was 
born. When He hath been re- 
deemed from the Lord, then re- 
turn we hither." 

And suddenly the heavenly 
glory shone again before Na- 
than's blind eyes. It was gone 
almost as quickly as it had 

come; all was dark; and he was 
26 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

left Standing with outstretched 
hands while the noise of the car- 
avan receded in the distance. 

It was Elon again who, when 
the lad told him that evening, 
cleared up the mystery. "It is 
Joseph of Nazareth and the 
Babe's mother," he said, "taking 
the little one to the Temple to 
present Him to the Lord accord- 
ing to the Law. Wait, lad! They 
will return in a day or two." 

And so they did. To little 

Nathan, sitting with ears alert 

for sounds from the north, there 

came again the patter of the ass's 

feet, the shuffle of sandals, and 

even, this time, the cry of a 

child ; and then — the light shone 

again and brought him to his feet 

with a happy cry. 
27 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

The travelers halted. The boy 
heard Joseph saying something 
— he knew not quite what — to 
him. The light was still before 
his eyes, shining white and clear. 
His lips moved, but he could not 
speak. A coin touched his palm; 
then he found his voice. 

'^Art thou not Joseph of Naza- 
reth?" he asked breathlessly. 

^Thou sayest," returned the 
man. 

"And— thou hast the Babe— 
the Saviour — ^with thee?" 

The mother, seated upon the 
ass, arms cradling the Child, an- 
swered Joseph's look of amaze- 
ment. 

"It is the little lad who came 

with the shepherds to the stable," 

she said softly. She leaned to- 
28 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

wards him. ^Tell us," she com- 
manded with kindly voice, "thou 
art blind?" 

"I am blind." 

"Yet thou didst know us when 
we came by?" 

He did not hesitate. "I have 
sharp ears," he said, "and the 
light came." 

"The light?" 

"The glory. I saw it on the 
hills; I saw it again in the stable; 
and once more when ye went 
north I saw it." 

She nodded. "I, too, have 
seen it," she said, "and now?" 

"It is here," he answered eag- 
erly, "a great brightness before 
my eyes. So I know : but" — and 
his voice fell — "I cannot see the 

Babe." 

29 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

''Stretch forth thy hand," she 
said. 

He put it forth quickly. She 
took it and guided it until it 
rested on the Babe's cheek. The 
sensitive finger-tips touched 
gently, gently, the rounded 
cheeks, the soft little chin, and as 
gently withdrew. The blind boy 
stood speechless, face aglow. 
They watched him for a mo- 
ment; then Joseph took the lead- 
ing rope in his hand. 

'The Lord be with thee," he 
said: and the mother echoed the 
words in her soft voice. 

"And with you both," said Na- 
than. 

That night he stole across to 

tell Elon. "And this is the 

strange thing," he said: "when I 
30 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

touched the Babe, the light 
failed ; and when I took my hand 
away it came again." 

The shepherd pondered for a 
time. 

"I know," he ventured, at 
length. ^Thou seest the light 
with thy soul's eyes; but thy 
hands are the eyes of thy body; 
and when thou didst touch the 
Christ it was as if thou sawest 
with thy body's eyes. Thou know- 
est that together the flesh and the 
spirit see not." 

^What will happen, Elon, 
when He shall open mine eyes?" 

^Thou wilt see the light no 
more, but only the Christ Him- 
self." 

^That will be better," said the 
lad cheerfully. 

31 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

And that night he prayed again 
for patience to wait till the Christ 
should be a man. 

It seemed as if one had but to 
wait by the roadside and things 
were sure to happen. Only a day 
had passed when his ears caught 
the jingle and creak of the har- 
ness of camels. With the mur- 
mur of strange voices high in air, 
the strident shouts of the drivers, 
the grunting of the soft-footed 
beasts, they passed rapidly on to- 
wards Bethlehem, the tinkle of 
the bell at the throat of the last 
camel growing fainter and fainter 
and dying away at last. Nathan's 
father, Shama, told at supper who 
the riders were : Wise Men from 

the East, he had heard at the 

32 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

watering-trough by the well. 
They were looking — and he 
smiled derisively — looking for a 
child born King of the Jews. 
They wanted to worship Him. 

Shama laughed hoarsely. 
"Elon hath a fool's tale," he 
croaked; ^^there was a babe born 
in the stable at the inn during the 
census-taking: and he saith it is 
the Christ — saith the angels told 
him so ! I say, a poor Christ, born 
in a stable!" 

Nathan sat silent, afraid yet 
eager to tell all he knew. The 
mother, with a fretful child upon 
her knee, did not appear to be in- 
terested. 

That night it stormed, and Na- 
than, with a score of questions on 
his lips for Elon's ears, must 

33 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

needs save them through the long 
day that followed. Then, the 
frugal evening meal over, he 
waited his chance, slipped quietly 
out of the house, and hastened 
across the slope to the sheepfold. 

The flocks were in; the man at 
the gate opened to him. Over the 
soft sounds of the fold he heard 
the shepherds' voices in animated 
talk. Carefully he threaded his 
way among the resting sheep to- 
wards the far corner, till he felt 
Elon's hand catch his staff. He 
let himself be guided to a seat by 
his big friend's side. 

"I knew thou wouldst come," 
was his greeting. ^^So thou hast 
heard of the Wise Men?" 

''Yea, truly," said the lad 
eagerly. '*I heard them pass ; and 

34 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

father told me they sought the 
Babe. They must have found 
Him, Elon; but all day I have 
watched for their return, and they 
have not come." 

"They did find Him truly," re- 
turned the shepherd. "I have 
been to the town this day, and I 
have heard from the lips of the 
porter at the inn all that hap- 
pened. They found the Babe, 
and worshiped Him, and brought 
forth gifts fit for a King; the por- 
ter saw it. He saith the Babe's 
mother put a little gold casket in 
His hands, and He let it fall " 

"And then?" 

"Why, lad, here is the strangest 
of all. In the night they left the 
inn, and are gone no man knows 
whither." 

35 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

^Who are gone?" 

'The Wise Men, and the Babe 
and Mary and Joseph," Elon an- 
swered. 'The porter saith the 
Wise Men roused him at mid- 
night. He opened for them, and 
they took the road to the south. 
Then, before dawn, came Joseph 
with the Babe and His mother, 
and they too turned toward the 
south." 

The lad was silent, as if unable 
to grasp what had been said. 
Overhead the moon shone out be- 
tween scudding clouds. The air 
blew soft from the south, whither 
the Babe had gone. 

A few days later a terrible 
thing befell. It was noonday, and 

Nathan sat on the threshold in the 

36 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

wintry sunlight, when he heard 
the tread of heavy feet and the 
clash of arms. He knew who 
came, men of the Roman garri- 
son lodged in Herod's castle on 
the hill beyond the town. He had 
always taken a fearful joy in 
hearing them pass, feet tramping 
so firmly, armor clashing so war- 
like. There were not many this 
time, only a quaternion, his ears 
told him. They came up the hill 
towards the house and stopped be- 
fore the door. When they went 
clanging down the hill again, the 
mother, quiet with an awful grief, 
sat beside a tiny bleeding body; 
while Shama and the little blind 
Nathan stood in the road pale and 
sweating with helpless rage, the 
father's hoarse curses and the 

37 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

lad's shrill ones flying together on 
the winter wind to join the wails 
and execrations of bereaved 
homes in the town below. 

They left the little house on the 
hill after that. The mother could 
not bear to stay. The sheep were 
sold, the scanty household goods 
packed on an ox-cart, and the 
three went over the hills to the 
Holy City and there took up their 
abode. 

The years passed. Shama, the 
surly, had turned porter in the 
wool market, where he picked up 
a precarious living. Nathan had 
grown into tall and stalwart man- 
hood, but still fit, as his father 
often bitterly complained, for 

naught but begging at the Temple 

38 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

Gate. Day after day, year after 
year, he sat there, seeking a sunny 
spot when the sun shone, a shel- 
tered corner when the wind was 
searching, calling ever upon the 
passer-by for alms. 

And still, despite the years that 
had passed, the memory of the 
strange happenings of that winter 
in Bethlehem did not fade from 
his mind. Often as he sat in his 
nook by the Temple Gate he 
whiled away the idle hours with 
his musings on the Saviour. 
When he had reached his tall, 
slim young manhood he thought 
to himself, "The Christ is ten 
years old! He will be as tall 
as my elbow by now." And a 
year or two later, with a sudden 
thrill, he thought, "The Christ is 

39 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

old enough to come to the 
Feast!" 

It was during that very Pass- 
over week that he saw the heaven- 
ly light, once and again, while the 
crowd thronged the Temple steps. 
But the press was so great that, 
search as he would with tapping 
staff, he could not find the boy 
Christ. Yet it made his heart beat 
light again, and the blind beg- 
gar's prayer, nightly offered 
through all those years, was of- 
fered with increasing hope. 

After that the years, though 

still dragging slowly enough, had 

their weary length shortened by 

an occasional shining of the glory 

before Nathan's blind eyes. It 

came now and then during one 

of the great Feasts, when all Is- 
40 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

rael flocked to the Holy City. His 
eyes would be flooded with a mo- 
mentary radiance; a hammering 
pulse would beat in his throat; 
but always the end would be the 
same — darkness and a vain 
searching for the Christ who had 
passed in the crowd. 

^Wait," he would whisper to 
himself, remembering old Elon's 
counsel; ^^wait! The Christ is as 
tall as I am now. Soon His day 
— and mine — ^will come!" 

In the Temple and on the 
streets his quick ears began to 
catch a fresh note in the gossip of 
the day. Shama brought it now 
and again from the lips of porters 
and merchants in the wool mar- 
ket. It was about a new prophet, 

John by name, who had stalked 
41 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

out of the Judaen hills with the 
burning cry, '^Repent ye; for the 
Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!" 
And though priest and Pharisee 
scoffed, the blind beggar knew 
what it meant. 

He was not at all surprised 
when he heard the newest and 
strangest reports. All Jerusalem 
was agog over them. They told 
of another prophet, Jesus of 
Nazareth, who was going about 
working mighty wonders, claim- 
ing to be the Christ. And though 
he thought his heart would burst 
as he listened, Nathan answered 
the gossip-monger quietly enough, 
^^The Lord is not slack. His time 
is near at hand." 

On a certain day he sat in the 

doorway of the little home down 
42 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

in the heart of the city. It was 
the Sabbath; and he might not 
beg. Above him, could he have 
seen it, the Temple hill rose in 
white majesty, crowned by the 
Temple itself with glittering pin- 
nacles piercing the blue. 

He heard the murmur of voices 
and the clack of sandals coming 
up the street. He wondered idly 
who it might be. Then — the 
light! It shone in upon his dark- 
ness, and he sat as if fixed to the 
doorstep, unable to rise for the 
trembling in his limbs! He 
awoke suddenly to the fact that 
the sound of steps had ceased and 
a voice was speaking. He caught 
the words, ^^I am the Light of the 
World." A hand was laid upon 
his eyes, anointing them with 

43 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

something moist and cool ; and a 
voice said : "Go, wash in the pool 
ofSiloamr 

The speaker was gone. The 
light had faded. Nathan the beg- 
gar, alone upon the steps, felt for 
his staff, got to his feet, and hast- 
ened, tapping, tapping on the cob- 
bles, down the street. Deaf to the 
angry expostulations of those he 
jostled, unmoved by the curses of 
a portly Pharisee, on he went, out 
at the city gate, down the hillside, 
until, stumbling along the broad 
stone steps that led to the placid 
pool, he threw himself prone by 
its brink and plunged his face into 
its cool waters. 



He had known what men meant 
by such words as light and dark- 

44 




He threw himself prone by its brink and 
plunged his face into its cool waters 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

ness since the night when the 
heavenly glory had first shone in 
upon him; but never had he 
known the meaning of the blue of 
the sky, the green of Olivet, the 
warm whiteness of the Temple 
walls and the golden radiance of 
their sun-kissed pinnacles, until 
now, when he slowly climbed the 
stairs and looked about him on a 
new world. He joyously drank it 
in through his eyes. 

"And now," said he to himself, 
"to find the Christ, that I may see 
Him with these eyes !" 

A dark night, without a moon, 
had fallen on the hills above 
Bethlehem. The sheep lay hud- 
dled together. Except for their 
soft breathing, and the whistle of 

45 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

the wind through the chinks in 
the wall, no sound broke the still- 
ness. Sheltered in a corner of the 
fold, Elon, wrapped in his sheep- 
skin coat, hugged the embers of 
the slowly dying fire and dozed 
away the hours. 

On a sudden one of the dogs be- 
side him lifted his head with a 
low growl. The old shepherd 
straightened himself and listened. 
There was a sound of footsteps 
drawing near the fold. Whoever 
it was, he had left the highway 
and was approaching with steady 
stride as one who knew the way 
even in the dark. Elon heard him 
fumbling at the gate. At a word 
the dogs crouched silent, waiting. 
The man entered and came to- 
ward the fire, a dark form dimly 
46 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

seen, threading his way among 
the sheep. 

^^Shalom," he said, when at 
length he stood before Elon. 

^To thee also peace," returned 
the old shepherd. 

The man seated himself by the 
fire. He was a stranger, though 
his voice seemed somehow famil- 
iar. The dogs smelled of his 
clothes, appeared satisfied, and 
lay down again, with their heads 
on their forepaws, watching him. 
The fire gave still enough light to 
show his face, strong and kindly, 
and to reveal a pair of eyes look- 
ing into Elon's like those of a fa- 
miliar friend. Who could this be? 

At length the stranger broke 
the silence: "Thou art the keeper 
of the sacred flock?" 

47 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

'^One of the keepers." 

^^Hast been here long?" 

There was a ring of honest 
pride in Elon's voice as he an- 
swered, "Twoscore and ten years 
have I herded on these hills." 

'^And hast never lost a sheep?" 
the other's voice asked in gentle 
raillery. 

^^Never," said old Elon quietly. 

The stranger's tone altered. ^^I 
passed an old house on the road 
yonder; 'tis a lonely place for men 
to dwell." 

"No man dwelleth there," said 
Elon. "It hath stood empty now 
these thirty years." 

"And thou didst know them 
that dwelt there?" 

Elon eyed him in silence for a 

moment. The question did not 

48 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

seem altogether an idle one. It 
came into his mind that the famil- 
iar thing about the stranger was 
his voice. 

^Tea," said he at length; '^I 
knew them." 

^^Beggars, from the look of the 
place," said the stranger careless- 

ly. 

The shepherd answered slowly, 
"One was a beggar." 

The other rose to his feet. 
"Friend," he said, "the night is 
far spent, and I have a vow to pay 
at sunrise. If thou wilt, I will 
rest by thy fire." 

"The fold is thine," said Elon; 
and the two wrapped themselves 
in their cloaks and lay down to 
rest. It was long, however, be- 
fore the old shepherd slept. Be- 

49 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

fore his eyes was the face of the 
stranger, and in his ears rang the 
familiar voice; but he fell asleep 
with the puzzle still unanswered. 

He woke at the first break of 
day to find the stranger's place by 
the dead fire empty. He rose and 
looked about him. The man was 
on the tower, eyes fixed on the 
eastern horizon. Elon climbed 
the steps and stood beside him. 

^Teace, on this new day," he 
said. 

The other turned with the 
words, ^^\nd to thee," and again 
he faced the sunrise. 

The gray of the cast had 

changed to rose, and the western 

heavens gave answer in paler 

tints. The valleys lay shadowed 

in the growing light, the should- 
50 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

ers of the hills by Bethlehem were 
silvered, the eastern mountains 
rose dark against the glowing sky. 
Then suddenly the ragged edge 
of the mountains, cutting the sky, 
was rimmed with gold, and the 
sun rose, bathing the world 
in glory. The white walls of 
Bethlehem gleamed golden; the 
pale olives, too, were warmed into 
gold; the green gardens and vine- 
yards shone golden; the very 
rocks and greensward at the foot 
of the tower seemed glorified. 

The stranger pointed down to- 
wards the foot of the hills, where 
through deep rifts the silvered 
waters shone. 

^The Sea of Salt?" he asked. 

"Yea," said Elon, more deeply 

puzzled than ever. Who could 
51 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

this be, that he knew the way to 
the fold in the darkness, yet knew 
not the Dead Sea? 

The man's eyes scoured the 
world; his face glowed with feel- 
ing. 

"O my friend," he said at last; 
"tell me of what we see. That is 
Bethlehem at our feet? And the 
great tower and castle on the hill 
beyond, what are they?" 

"Herod's new castle," said 

Elon; and as he had done once 

long before, he told the story of 

the hills of Bethlehem and named 

the distant mountains beyond the 

valley. The stranger said not 

a word, but drank it in eagerly, 

his eyes, brighter than any Elon 

had ever known, resting on this 

spot and that, but dwelling long- 
52 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

est on the white-walled town. 
Suddenly he threw back his head 
and, drawing a deep breath, 
turned to Elon a shining face. 

'The sun hath risen," said the 
shepherd, remembering; "and 
thou hast a vow to pay." 

The man laughed softly; but 
quickly, with sobered face, said, 
"My vow is paid, friend shep- 
herd. It was that I should look 
upon this scene from this tower. 
All these years, these long, dark 
years, have I waited — " 

Elon's gaunt frame began to 
tremble. "Who art thou?" he 
asked. 

The stranger smiled at him. 
"That was not the whole of my 
vow," he said. "It was, too, that 
I should see a certain old shep- 

53 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

herd and have him tell me about 
Bethlehem and the hills and the 
Salt Sea—" 

Elon gripped him by both 
shoulders. ^Who art thou?" he 
cried hoarsely. 

The stranger looked into his 
face steadfastly for a moment, and 
said simply, ^^O Elon, I am he 
that was blind, and, behold, I 
see!" 

''Art thou Nathan?" cried the 
shepherd. ''Joy of my life, to see 
thee once again and see thee so!" 
And with tears upon his furrowed 
cheeks, murmuring over and over, 
"Nathan! Nathan!" old Elon 
threw his arms about him and 
kissed him. 

So stood the two men on the 
hillside among the grazing sheep. 

54 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

'^1 told thee, long ago," said 
Elon, ^^that in His own time the 
Christ would open thine eyes. 
And He hath done it. Now 
what?" 

Nathan's face was grave, but 
his look was full of exaltation. 

*^Now," he made answer, ^'now 
have I given for His use these 
eyes of mine, for ever." 

"Amen," said Elon; "and I, 
too, with mine old eyes, here 
herding the sheep." 

With sudden tears of joy he 
laid his hand on Nathan's shoul- 
der. "Dost remember how we 
sang, that night, returning from 
the inn? So let us sing again." 

And there on the hillside, 
among the sheep, while the sun 
shone down upon the white walls 

55 



WHEN THE BLIND SAW 

of Bethlehem, their song rose 
upon the air : 

^^O give thanks unto Jehovah, for 

he is good; 
For his loving kindness endureth 

forever/' 



56 






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